Reggie McNeal has pointed out that there is a leadership

vacuum in American culture which not only poses a challenge

but threatens the very fabric of society.
This vacuum is a black hole whose gravitational pull of
negativity drains creativity and new ideas out of the culture into
oblivion.
The culture today is in need of leadership which will reverse this
trend.

Leadership Lessons from the Old Testament

and Moses
It is not only true of the secular world but also of the church
world. One of the more fascinating studies in biblical leadership
is provided in the Old Testament by Moses. Moses was
 a leader
 a statesman, and
 a legislator par excellence.
The life of Moses can be divided into three parts as God
prepared him to lead the children of Israel out of bondage in
Egypt.

3 Parts of Moses’ Leadership Development

In the first forty years of his life, Moses lived as Pharaoh’s son
which gave him the benefit of the finest training in the world at
that time.
In the second forty years of his life spent in Midian, he became a
shepherd so that at the proper time he could become the
shepherd to the children of Israel.
Thirdly, in his last forty years, he used the lessons learned to
lead the children of Israel out of Egypt and to the Jordan River
(Lockyer, Herbert, 1958).
God used Moses’ life experiences to shape him into the leader
the Lord needed for His people to bring them out of bondage
into freedom.
God molded Moses into a charismatic leader with leadership
skills in delegation so that he could lead the children of Israel
through the wilderness.

The Character Make-up of Moses as a

Leader
Moses is an intriguing leader because he was a blend of 3
leadership styles.
1. charismatic
2. administrative
3. conflict resolution
A careful study of Moses’ temperament, his strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities, and threats will give rich application
for anyone studying the subject of leadership and leadership
development.

Moses’ Leadership Temperament

Moses’ leadership temperament was a blending of the positive
and negative. These two temperaments create the strongest of
extroverted personalities when combined.
For this reason, Moses exhibited an orientation towards people
through his compassionate and tender heart. This got him into
trouble when he killed an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew
according to Exodus 2:11-12. When his fellow Hebrews and the
Pharaoh condemned him for his action, he fled to Midian.
Moses’ positive temperament provided him with a strong will
counteracting the negative temperament of being weak-willed.
Also, the compassionate heart of the positive temperament
counteracts the ill-tempered tendency towards lacking
compassion (Personal Temperament Test: Profile, 2008).

Laws of Leadership Used by Moses

Law of Dreams
As a charismatic leader, the first Law of Leadership used by
Moses was the Law of Dreams.
This law states that people will follow a leader who gives them a
desirable object or goal. Moses presented the people with a
desirable object of the Promised Land where they would be free.
Law of Motivation
The Second Law he used was the Law of Motivation. This law
states that people follow leaders who offer reasons to reach for a
goal. If a leader provides a practical reason to work, people will
follow that leader. Moses offered freedom as the motivation for
the people to follow him (Towns, Elmer, 2007).
Law of Rewards
As an administrative leader, the first Law of Leadership used
by Moses was the Law of Rewards which is simply that a leader
will have followers if that leader will offer rewards to the
followers.
Law of Accountability
To have followers, a leader must reward them. Another Law of
Leadership used by Moses was the Law of Accountability.
Moses observed this law in giving responsibilities to his
followers. He gave Aaron the priestly responsibilities and
appointed elders to deal with judicial responsibilities. In this
way, Moses allowed his followers to contribute to the effort to
reach the Promised Land (Towns, Elmer, 2007).
Law of the Picture
Moses exhibited much strength due to his charismatic and
administrative leadership style.
First of all, he was able to cast a vision of leaving Egypt to go to
the Promised Land. This is a trait of charismatic leadership. A
true leader will cast a vision to which their followers embrace
(Towns, Elm, 2007). Maxwell refers to this as the Law of the
Picture.
People will do what they can envision. Leaders who can paint a
picture are not only able to communicate the vision but they
model the vision so that the picture comes alive for their
followers.
Moses was able to cast the vision for the people because he not
only communicated it but he modeled it for them by his
boldness before the Pharaoh (Maxwell, John, 1998/2007).
Moses’ encounter with God made him responsive to God’s will
in his life. Moses knew leading the Hebrews out of Egypt was a
calling upon his life and not a job. Billy Graham has stated it
this way,
“When we come to the end of ourselves, we come to the
beginning of God” (Shelly, Marshall & Myra, Harold, 2005).
It was at the burning bush where Moses came to the end of
himself and the beginning of God. It was time spent with God
that gave him insight into God.
According to Exodus 33:18, this intimacy led him to cry out on
the mountain,
“I beseech thee, show me thy glory!” (KJV).
It was this relationship that convinced him that though he would
face great opposition from Pharaoh, he was convinced that God
would give him the victory in pursuing of the calling that God
had placed upon his life. He knew that God would empower him
with the necessary abilities, talents, and skills necessary to fulfill
this calling even when his own people doubted him (Towns,
Elmer, 2007).
Law of Victory
Moses endured until the Pharaoh weakened and relented. To
commemorate this victory, Moses established a memorial to that
great victory. From this he led them from victory to victory
(Towns, Elm, 2007). This is the Law of Victory. Stated simply,
leaders find a way for the team to win.
An example of this law in action was Winston Churchill as
Prime Minister of Great Britain during World War Two. He was
unwilling to accept defeat. The idea of losing was alien to his
thinking and to his leadership of the nation during the darkest
hours of the struggle against Hitler. Churchill would accept
nothing less than total victory (Maxwell, John, 2007).
As an administrative leader, Moses showed strength through
establishing his reputation with the plagues upon Egypt. Moses
enhanced his reputation and credibility as a leader through
memorials celebrating victories and recounting those victories
through story telling.
As a conflict resolution leader, Moses dealt with internal and
external conflicts. He did not take any conflict personally
because he knew the battle belonged to God. Also, Moses laid
out plans for the people when they came in possession of the
Land so there would be less conflict and strife. He knew as a
leader there would be conflict in taking the Promise Land and he
identified the sources of the conflict his followers would face
(Towns, Elmer, 2007).

Personal Weaknesses of Leaders

For Moses, one of the excuses he gave God for not wanting to
go down to Egypt to set God’s people free was because he was a
“weak-speaker.” His temperament could be defined as one most
likely to say something wrong.
Moses also struggled with his “anger-weakness” throughout his
life as seen by his killing of the Egyptian in Exodus 2:11-14. He
also had to deal with personal anger that caused him to strike the
rock rather than speak to the rock for water as described in
Numbers 20. This was an action of anger that prevents him
from entering the Promised Land.
Moses is like most people. He needed the constant filling of the
Holy Spirit and a close walk with God to deal with personal
weaknesses. However, God was able to take his speaking
inability and his quick temper to create positive results.

Positive Leadership Opportunities

Though he discounted his speaking ability at the burning bush,
every time Moses had an opportunity to speak for God whether
before Pharaoh or the people, he did it.
Moses took every opportunity to keep the vision before the
people and keep them motivated towards reaching the Promised
Land. Moses also took the opportunity to mentor his successor
as he took Joshua aside and trained him to be the next leader.

Threats to Leadership and the Advice of

Jethro
Moses made sure that the dream of reaching the Promised Land
stayed before the people. He knew that he had to be wary of
dreams and dreamers beyond the scope of God’s plan. He knew
that if distractions took place, then the dream of reaching the
Promised Land would never be fulfilled.
On one occasion Moses appeared more organized than he
actually was. In Exodus 18 Jethro saw this danger and warned
Moses that he was stretched too thin by all the responsibilities
he had assumed. Jethro told Moses that he needed to recruit
help. Exodus 18:13-21 says,
“
The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the
people, and they stood around him from morning till evening.
When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the
people, he said, “What is this you are doing for the people? Why
do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around
you from morning till evening?”
Moses answered him, “Because the people come to me to seek
God’s will. Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me,
and I decide between the parties and inform them of God’s
decrees and instructions.”
Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good.
You and these people who come to you will only wear
yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot
handle it alone. Listen now to me and I will give you some
advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people’s
representative before God and bring their disputes to him. Teach
them his decrees and instructions, and show them the way they
are to live and how they are to behave. But select capable men
from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who
hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over
thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.
Upon the advice of his father-in-law, Jethro, Moses delegated
authority to men selected to be judges to free Moses for more
important leadership tasks.
Moses heeded the warning of his father-in-law and appointed
men to help him run the administrative side of leading the
people.

When Leadership is Accused Falsely

In Numbers 16, Moses dealt with the most serious challenge to
his leadership when Korah led a rebellion.
Koran charged that Moses had used the children of Israel to
promote his own agenda and build his own kingdom. Moses
turned to God knowing the battle belonged to the Lord. Korah
and his followers were judged and Moses remained as the
leader. However, this story shows very clearly that any leader
can and will be challenged, even by those who are trusted.

The Void in Leadership Today

There is a leadership void in our culture and in the church today.
To seek answers for this void, it requires for careful study of
biblical leadership and application of those lessons.
The study of Moses as a biblical leader is profitable to everyone
in a leadership context. Moses was a leader. Everything in his
life was used by God to prepare him for the day he would lead
the children of Israel out of Egypt.
Moses is a rich model of leadership because he was a
combination of the charismatic, administrative, and conflict
resolution leadership styles. A careful study of Moses’
temperament and the Laws of Leadership he followed, his
strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats will profit any
student of leadership.
Reference
 Lockyer, Herbert. (1958). All the Men of the Bible. Grand
Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.
 Maxwell, John. (2007). The Twenty-one Irrefutable Laws
of Leadership: Follow Them an People Will Follow You
(2nd ed.). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson. (Original work
published 1998)
 McNeal, Reggie. (1998). Revolution in Leadership:
Training Apostles for Tomorrow’s Church. Nashville, TN:
Abingdon Press.
 Personal Temperament Test: Profile. (2008). The 12 Blends
of Temperaments from the book “Why You Act The Way
You Do” by Tim LaHaye. Retrieved 1 November 2008
from
http://www.goingthedistance.org/pages.asp?pageid=18155
 Shelly, Marshall & Myra, Harold. (2005). The Leadership
Secrets of Billy Graham. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan
Publishing House.
 Towns, Elmer. (2007). Bblical Models for Leadership.
Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.